Penang: Public Gold Group, a company offering an integrated range of gold trading, is looking to expand its business by opening three more branches by year-end.

Its chairman Datuk Louis Ng Chun Hau said the company currently had 14 branches throughout Malaysia with three new ones in Kota Kinabalu, Kajang and Klang.

"The Kajang and Klang branches are our third and fourth respectively in the Klang Valley, with the other two in Sunway and Ampang.

The Kota Kinabalu branch is our first in Sabah," he added.

Ng was speaking to reporters after the opening of Public Gold's new corporate office by the Raja Permaisuri Agong, Tuanku Haminah Hamidun, here Thursday.

He said the company also planned to expand its business to the international market by venturing into Singapore in June this year.

He said the Singapore government's move to revoke the Goods and Services Tax (GST) on gold this year was a positive development as it would help ensure higher returns for industry players.

"We urge the Malaysian government to not follow Singapore's mistake of imposing the GST on gold as it erodes the margin of traders and makes it impractical for people to purchase the precious metal as an asset class," he added.

Ng said the company now had about 30,000 dealers and 60,000 customers with a 300 per cent growth per annum.

Commenting on the company's new corporate office at Technoplex, in the Free Industrial Zone in Bayan Lepas, he said it would consolidate all the business operations of the company.

Earlier, the company contributed RM241,000 to the Yayasan Anak-Anak Yatim Sultanah Haminah Charity Fund as part of its corporate social responsibility initiative. - Bernama